Musk’s SpaceX, Once Pooh-Poohed, Is Wake-Up Call for Europeans
- French space agency chief says Musk wasn’t taken seriously
- Airbus-Safran Launchers working on re-useable space rockets
Here's How Elon Musk Plans to Send Tourists to Space
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The success of Elon Musk’s SpaceX industrial ventures has given Europe’s space industry a kick in the pants.
After three flawless landings of the first stage of Space Exploration Technologies Corp.’s Falcon 9 rocket on a drone barge in the Atlantic ocean since April, the 44-year-old entrepreneur announced on Tuesday that he plans to start reusing rockets as soon as September. In contrast, Europe’s non-reusable competitor, Ariane 6, may be ready only in 2020, while a reusable version, a project for which was unveiled this month, may come even later.